Page 32 of Summer Heat
"I said I'd help," I said, feeling worried about this project. "But what about filming your progress? Should we start to videotape this conversation?"
Shep grinned. "What do ya think, Princess Maya? Should we discuss your bathroom on video?"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Maya exclaimed.
"What do you think? Are you okay with Maya being on there?"
"I don't see why not."
"She'll be the perfect model for our princess bathroom. She's the boss." He high-fived Maya, and my heart squeezed for the millionth time. When would the way he interacted with my daughter get old? I had a bad feeling it wouldn't.
"Let's do it in the bathroom, and you can go over the rendering with her again, and she can tell you what she wants," I said, making sure my phone was sufficiently charged.
"We have to clean up breakfast first and make sure we don't have syrup anywhere," Shep said.
Together, we cleaned up and then got dressed. I found the stand I bought to use for the filming. His brothers had mentioned doing something like this a long time ago, but Shep had always been resistant.
I wasn't sure why, but I had a feeling that filming with Maya eased his anxiety. That was the main reason why I agreed to allow her on camera. And it would only be seen by a few islanders.
Who would care about a little renovation video on a local business owner's website? As much as I loved the idea, I didn't think it would catch on beyond local people looking to hire Kingston construction.
I cleaned up the bathroom and set up the phone and stand in the entrance. Then Shep ushered Maya inside, in front of the shower. There wasn't a lot of room to move around in here, which would make filming easier for me. It was why I used the stand.
Shep squatted down in front of Maya. "Are you nervous?"
Maya did a little dance. "I'm so excited. I can't wait to see us on video."
I covered my mouth with my hand.
Shep glared over at me and then said to Maya. "Well, I'm nervous. So don't leave me hanging here all by myself, okay?"
Maya laughed. "Why would I leave?"
Shep stood, brushing off his jeans. "I don't know. But please don't."
I believed him when he said he was nervous. He didn't just say that to alleviate Maya's concerns, because she had none. I didn't think she understood that the video would be shown online, and its reach could be huge. I didn't think it would be, but that didn't mean it wasn't possible.
Maya held his hand. "Don't worry. I won't leave you."
I sighed. I wasn't going to survive these two. They were too sweet together. "I think Shep will be okay. He was made for the camera. Are you ready now?"
Shep stretched his neck from one side to the other, then shook out his limbs. "I'm ready now."
"Mommy, you have to do a countdown."
"Okay," I said, checking the camera to make sure everything was ready to go. "Three, two, one…and action."
We hadn't discussed how to start out the segment, and I realized my mistake when no one said anything at first.
But then Maya put her hands on her hips. "Are you going to make me a princess bathroom?"
Shep made a big show of looking around the space. "A princess bathroom, huh?"
"I want tons of bling," Maya said.
Shep pulled out his piece of paper and smoothed it out. They stood together, so I moved my phone so that I could see what was on the page too.
"I was thinking about lots of gold, so that's good. What do you think about a standalone tub with these elegant feet?"
